Southernmost Point Buoy
Southernmost Point Buoy is a historic site in Florida, at a recorded elevation of 6 m. The nearest named place is Southernmost Point, a park less than a tenth of a mile away. FLORIDA KEYS HWY passes 0.3 miles off. 77 named places lie within 25 miles.
Simple buoy-shaped monument located at the southernmost tip of the continental U.S. & 90 miles north of Cuba. est. 1983 the "publicly accessible" southernmost point in the continental United States
The story
The Southernmost Point Buoy is an anchored concrete buoy in Key West, Florida that claims to mark the southernmost point in the continental United States — though it is neither the true southernmost point of the continental US nor of Key West — and was established as a tourist attraction by the city on September 10, 1983. The large painted buoy is 18 feet (5.5 m) above sea level at the corner of South Street and Whitehead Street. The "southernmost point" was originally marked with a small sign, before the city of Key West erected the now-famous concrete buoy in 1983. The buoy has overall withstood several hurricanes and is a gathering place for photographs and tourists. The paint job was damaged by Hurricane Irma in September 2017, but it was refurbished later that year by the original artist. As indicated on the buoy, Cuba is roughly 90 miles (140 km) south of this point in Key West; this was not originally on the marker, but rather on a smaller sign next to marker. On September 4th, 2025, a duplicate concrete buoy was installed at the end of nearby Duval St while seawall repair commenced at the corner of Whitehead St and Duval St. The original buoy was painted white and obscured from view.
From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Dates from 1983.
Wikidata Q2304747, referenced by the OpenStreetMap record.
What the record says
- Built
- 1983
- Elevation
- 5.5 m
- Material
- concrete
- Inscription
- The Conch Republic|90 Miles to Cuba|Southernmost|Point|Continental|U.S.A.|Key West, F.L.|Home of the Sunset
What to expect
- Access
- Yes
- Step-free access
- Yes
How to reach it
- 0.3 mi off the FLORIDA KEYS HWY, National
77 named places within 25 miles
- Southernmost Point: 0.0 mi
- Nelson English City Park: 0.2 mi
- Gato Village Pocket Park: 0.3 mi
- Bill Butler Park: 0.5 mi
- Bill Butler Park: 0.6 mi
- Southernmost Point: 0.1 mi
- Battery 231: 0.4 mi
- Self Propelled Semi-Sub "Big Foot": 0.5 mi
- Battery Seminole: 0.5 mi
- Burnt Down Building: 0.5 mi
- Key West Lighthouse & Keeper's Quarters Museum: 0.3 mi
- The Ernest Hemmingway Home and Museum: 0.4 mi
- USCGC Ingham Maritime Museum: 0.8 mi
- Oldest House Museum: 0.9 mi
- Donkey Milk House Museum: 0.9 mi
- South Beach: 0.1 mi
- Dog Beach: 0.3 mi
- Higgs Beach: 0.6 mi
- Higgs Beach: 0.8 mi
- Truman Beach: 0.8 mi
- Nancy Forrester's Secret Garden: 0.7 mi
- Pier B: 1.0 mi
- Key West Extreme Adventures: 1.1 mi
- Dolphin Watch: 1.1 mi
- SkyDive Keywest: 15.5 mi
- Key West Garden Club: 0.7 mi
- Memorial Sculpture Garden: 1.1 mi
- Bernstein Park: 3.9 mi
- Marilyn Monroe: 0.8 mi
- Embracing Peace: 1.0 mi
- Mary: 1.1 mi
- Key West Butterfly and Nature Consevatory: 0.1 mi
- The Key West Nature Preserve: 1.1 mi
- Picnick Area: 0.8 mi
- Felton Road: 2.7 mi
- Perky: 15.8 mi
When to go
Light through the year
| Date | Sunrise | Golden hour | Sunset |
|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox | 07:32 | 19:09 | 19:39 |
| June solstice | 06:40 | 19:46 | 20:19 |
| September equinox | 07:17 | 18:55 | 19:25 |
| December solstice | 07:08 | 17:11 | 17:44 |
Local time (America/New_York).
Climate normals
Months averaging 50–80 °F: Oct–May.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Avg °F | 69 | 70 | 73 | 77 | 80 | 82 | 84 | 84 | 83 | 80 | 75 | 72 |
| Precip in | 2.0 | 2.0 | 1.4 | 2.2 | 3.7 | 4.8 | 4.5 | 6.1 | 8.2 | 6.0 | 3.3 | 2.2 |
1991–2020 U.S. Climate Normals, NOAA NCEI — KEY W WFO, under a mile away.
Where this comes from
Location and category confirmed against OpenStreetMap.
OpenStreetMapWikipediaWikidataOfficial siteOpenStreetMap element node/1283754992
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